-The Telegraph Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day speech linked the decision to have small families to patriotism New Delhi: Narendra Modi's mention of "reckless population explosion" in his Independence Day address has led to speculation that the Government may now want to bring a law on population regulation. “Population explosion has been occurring at an unrestrained pace. This population explosion is creating innumerable challenges for us and the coming...

-Livemint.com Consumption declined over the period 2014-18, confirming fears that people ended up worse off Various data from the financial to the corporate sector over the last two months are confirming the worst fears of a sharp decline in demand in the economy. With stagnant investment and exports, there are clear signs of a sustained slowdown. Most of this was well known to anybody following the Indian economy, barring the Government, which...

-The Hindu Rice cultivation in Punjab, which thrived in the past due to the easy availability of water resources and free supply of electricity to farmers, is under considerable strain now. Vikas Vasudeva examines how overexploitation has made groundwater not only scarce but also increasingly alkaline. Gurmeet Singh, 60, a tall land-owning farmer in Bhattiwal Khurd village, which is located in Punjab’s Sangrur district, has yet again planted the water-guzzling paddy crop...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: After cities like Bhopal and Nagpur, it’s Delhi’s turn to go green by at least partially replacing firewood used in cremation with gobar kashth — wood-like dry blocks made from cattle dung. Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), which inspected the Goyla dairy in south Delhi last week, has asked South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) to utilise cattle dung from dairy colonies to manufacture these dry...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday announced the launch of Jal Jeevan Mission, which will primarily focus on providing piped water supply to all rural households by 2024. He said over Rs 3.5 lakh crore will be spent under the mission. Modi highlighted how for seven decades a large section of the rural populace had to wait for getting safe drinking water and needed to cover...